CAMP. 87 



' Fort McPherson, Neb. 



'June 9, 1873. 

 'The Assistant Adjutant-General, 



' Department of the Platte Omaha, Neb. 



' SIR, I have the honour to report that, in accordance 

 with instructions, I left Fort McPherson, Neb., May 27th, 

 1873, with one guide, one wagon-master, five teamsters, 

 and fifty-five enlisted men of Company ' F,' 3rd Cavalry, 

 for the purpose of patrolling the Eepublican Vnlley, as 



directed May 31st, marched down to Blackwood 



about twelve miles, and went into carnp. About 9 P.M. 

 a terrible freshet, without any apparent cause, swept down 

 the valley, carrying everything before it. Men, horses, 

 tents, army- wagons, were swept along like corks. For 

 five days previous we had no rain, and where this water 

 came from so suddenly I cannot yet understand. The 

 valley of Blackwood is about forty-five miles long, and 

 about one mile to a mile and a half wide. TM-j entire 

 stretch of country was one raging torrent, at lea.st from 

 six to seven feet deep, and how any man or horse escaped 

 is marvellous. 



' The only thing that prevented total destruction was 

 the fact that my camp was surrounded by a belt of timber 

 on three sides, and as the men were carried off by the 

 current they were enabled to save themselves by catching 

 the limbs of trees. When day broke on the morning of 

 the 1st June, it showed almost all the men of my company 

 on the tops of the trees, without any covering except 

 remnants of underclothes, and beneath them the torrent 

 still raging. After the lapse of a few hours the water 

 began to fall, and a few men who could swim got to the 

 hills. Afterwards the others, myself among the number, 

 were got off with life-lines and various other means. Up 

 to this time nothing was to be seen of what had been my 

 camp, except the top of an army- wagon, which had stuck 

 to a log on the ground, and on this wagon were collected 



